According to most professional services firms I talk to, the biggest challenge with implementing Salesforce.com is getting people to use it. After all, a system like Salesforce.com becomes useful when it has data in it. The question is, how do you get data in it?

Now, when I ask salespeople about Salesforce.com, they say their biggest challenge is taking time away from building relationships to do data entry. They just want to sell.

Irreconcilable differences? Not anymore. Along comes Implisit, a piece of software that eliminates the need for data entry. The technology updates your CRM seamlessly and effortlessly, an example of how Big Data translates into a useable tool in your business.

Here’s how it works: As your salespeople go about their business – sending and receiving emails, and scheduling appointments – Implisit culls records from the signature of the contact’s email. It grabs their name, title, phone and fax numbers, email and mailing addresses, as well as the time and date. It also captures calendar events, building a repository of contact information that can be used to drive targeted marketing campaigns and forecast sales.

What about all the data that is currently locked in your salesperson’s inbox? Into Salesforce.com it goes, without a single keystroke of data entry.

The cool thing about Implisit is that it delivers for both the organization and the salesperson. Compatible with work laptops, iphones, tablets, home computers, both PC and Mac, it makes salespeople more efficient, while making the company more effective with Salesforce.com.

But here’s the best part. Salespeople don't have to change what they are doing. Every contact interaction is attached to the right records, in the right context, and they never have to think about it. They don’t even have to know they are doing it.

So go ahead. Set your sales team free to do what they do best. And set your business free to grow by harnessing the power of Big Data.

PS Advisory is a Value Added Reseller of Implisit. Contact us for a preferred rate.

About the AuthorAndrew Bartels is a partner at PS Advisory, a firm dedicated to helping Insurance Agencies and other professional services organizations deploy and customize Salesforce.com, implement best practices and generate an ROI. Andrew has been CTO for a Top 100 Independent Insurance Agency, and is recognized by Salesforce.com as one of the leading innovators of implementing Salesforce.com in the insurance vertical. Learn more at www.psadvisory.com

As of the Salesforce Spring '15 release Salesforce.com will begin offering mapping capabilities that are native to the platform. ﻿

Here is a quick update on Salesforce.com plan to offer map-based features as part of the Spring '15 release.

With the Spring '15 release*, Salesforce.com are offering new mapping features:

Display of map images where any standard address field is sufficiently populated**. This functionality will be available through the desktop interface and the Salesforce1 Mobile app.

Standard Visualforce components for map creation.

Address suggestion and auto-completion available when editing address fields.

Salesforce.com has partnered with a third-party mapping provider to make these features work seamlessly within the application.

*Currently targeted for February 2015; date subject to change**To qualify for maps display, the Spring '15 feature requires that the address must meet the following criteria: (street AND city AND (state OR postal code OR country). Criteria is subject to change for future releases.

The maps display on standard address fields and address suggestions will be auto-enabled in production instances* as part of the Spring '15 release.

If you wish to disable this technology, please notify Salesforce by December 3rd, 2014. To submit an opt-outrequest, please complete the following steps**:

From your Salesforce org, click to access Help & Training

Click on Contact Support

Click on Open a Case

Select "Feature OptOut" from the 'I need assistance with' picklist

Select "Mapping Services OptOut" from the Product Topics picklist

Click Submit

*Sandbox instances will require the customer to opt-in to the map feature regardless of when they receive the Spring '15 release.**You will need to submit a request for each org that you wish to optout.

All in all, we are excited about this new functionality within Salesforce.com. What do you think?

﻿About the Author

Andrew Bartels is a partner at PS Advisory, a firm dedicated to helping Insurance Agencies and other professional services organizations deploy and customize Salesforce.com, implement best practices and generate an ROI. Andrew has been CTO for a Top 100 Independent Insurance Agency, and is recognized by Salesforce.com as one of the leading innovators of implementing Salesforce.com in the insurance vertical. Learn more at www.psadvisory.com